In Carnations we find Joy
by Jicar540
Summary: This is the story of a young priestess' spiritual journey, and how she affects the lives of those around her.


**In Carnations we find Joy**

A fresh, wood-scented aroma hung lazily in the air, gentle eddies swirling about, cradling leaves in their cooling embrace. Flittering about capriciously, the light-giving fairies glimmered vibrantly as they chased each other about, enraptured in their own games. Their soft tinkling seemed to suspend in the air, tender musical notes forming a soft, pleasant chorus.

The cavern, a hollowed-out section of one of Ellinia's towering trees, was home to world-renowned healer, Merino Truth. No matter the distance, from all four corners of the land, men and women would flock to Ellinia to seek his help. It was said that he had cured Queen Areda of a deadly desert fever that had claimed hundreds of lives before her.

It was no secret, the reason for his prowess. He was not only a man of science, but was also a holy one. Combining nature's gifts and the goddess' perfection, he could heal ailments that had never been heard of before. He was given treatment as if he were Minerva herself, but he never sought to claim the glory, for it was not his humble way.

The door chimes jingled, a series of escalating notes that trailed the newcomer as she limped towards the seated doctor. "Good afternoon, fine bowmistress, what brings you here today?" Merino's deep, baritone voice was a powerful, but somehow soothing tone.

"Well, originally it was to purchase some herbs for the townspeople, but I was ambushed on the way from Orbis. Foul fiends, those Balrogs were." Athena Pierce winced as she rolled up her bloodstained right sleeve, revealing a deep gouge glistening with an odd mixture of liquids.

"Pus has formed, I see. But this?" He raised up a gloved finger of green gloop.

"A cheap salve. It helped to stop the bleeding for a little while, then it lost its effectiveness."

"Hmm…" A wandering fairy darted over, helpfully shining a light over the two. "I'd think that the ointment actually fused with the dark magic in the wound and did something worse. You should've known better than to do this," the medic remarked, mockingly severe. As he drew breath, about to start a new sentence, the door swung open and with a rather loud smash, hit the side of the tree's interior.

"Hey, Dad!" She let her backpack slide to the ground. "Why is there so much glass on the floor?"

"I should think that was an ornament behind the door. Was." He sighed ruefully.

Her gaze went behind the door, and she found there half a vase sitting on a skewed wooden desk. "Oops." Athena laughed musically.

"Hey! Who was that… oh." Lea cursed inwardly at her brashness. "Good afternoon, Lady Athena, um, Bowmistress, er, ma'am?" Tongue-tied, she struggled through her greeting and the wounded lady couldn't suppress a grin at the girl's discomfort.

"I should think any of those titles would do." Athena tried, and failed, to keep the humour out of her voice. She then winced as Dr. Truth took a tiny sample of the foul liquid around her wound.

"I'll have to run this through some tests… Till then, I'd better do something first. I'll make a dressing and then a blessing, how does that sound?"

"Catchy!" Lea Vesting quipped. Her father rolled his eyes.

Packing several strange, colourful herbs into a bandage, he placed it on the lesion, then put his hands over it, generating heat that would seal the plaster to the skin and increase the effectiveness of the herbs. Then, he knelt down and prayed.

A warm, golden light shone on the cut for a moment, then vanished. "I can hardly feel the pain now."

"May the goddess guide you to a quick recovery." Athena reached for her coin pouch, but Merino stalled her with a hand. "Anything, any day, for the leader of Henesys." Moving effortlessly, the bowmistress walked out of the room.

"Hmm… I'll call it a day. Come on, Lea, let's go meet your ma'am!" The joke was not lost on her, and her face burned with embarrassment.

* * *

Her hair glistened in the soft sunlight, a wavy auburn settling over the sky. Pale, white hands firmly clutching a thick, blue-leathered book, she looked upon the glorious sunset view, framed by oaken borders and frail glass panes. The clouds glided gently in the evening wind, white blotches of paint splashed across the red canvas that was the sky.

The door opened smoothly and she turned around to see her daughter running towards her room, and her husband trailing behind.

"Hey there, sweetie." He took off his boots, placing them on a wooden rack.

Sylvan Throe was by no means an ordinary woman – she was a breathtaking beauty, with the face of an angel and the grace of the wind. She and Merino met under strange circumstances – circumstances involving a ship, a crew of Balrogs, and a long and hard battle. But that was a story for another time.

"Merino… I've decided."

"Hmm?" Uncomprehending, Merino approached her, hugging her gently about the waist, swaying to an invisible rhythm. The soft silk of her gown was smooth to the touch.

"I'm going to advance."

His arms froze. She could feel his heartbeat quickening against her back.

"I shall be ordained. It is my destiny to draw closer to the Goddess."

"But… Manon… What if the dragon overpowers you?"

"It is a risk I must take. I have faith in Her." Merino opened his mouth, but she placed a smooth finger over his lips, shushing him.

"I'm going tomorrow."

* * *

He feared for her, but she would not let him follow her, for it was a quest she had to undertake alone.

He watched her leave, stave in hand, carrying a rucksack he so carefully packed the day before with nourishing potions.

"I promise I'll be back by next week. Don't tell Lea yet, I don't want her to be afraid for me. One person's terror is enough guilt for me." She laughed sweetly. "Pray for me."

True to her words, he earnestly prayed to the goddess Minerva to bring his sweetheart back safely. He gathered a few pink flowers (carnations, her favourite) from the garden, to be placed them in an ornate vase directly facing the door.

That would be the first thing she would see when she came back.

_But she never did, did she?_

* * *

_Dead._

"I PRAYED FOR HER SAFETY, MINERVA!"

_Chief Tatamo told him the sad news only a few days after she left for Leafre. Her body was found clawed repeatedly, burnt almost beyond recognition…_

"WHY!"

…_gripping her staff so tightly, summoning a magical spell that the goddess failed to empower…_

"…Dad?" Lea stood there in the hallway, barefoot and clothed in a nightgown, oblivious of the growing tension in the room. The lights shattered and cast the room in darkness when he stood up.

…_she fled, running amongst the undergrowth, fear etched in every line of her face, then she tripped…_

A dark, crimson light surrounded his hands, and he reached out with his mind, shattering a statue of the goddess where it stood.

_...it pounced upon her, and she screamed, it roared, dragon and human voices melding into one… _

The vase of carnations flew into his hand, and as his muscles clenched, the vase became shards, and the flowers hung broken and bloodied in his hand.

…_its claws raked across her limp body, and with a final, echoing shriek, it soared into the air, breathing a fiery, sylvan destruction…_

"What use are these now…?" His voice faltered away uselessly, his rage spent, and he tried to heal the flowers, but no, the yellow healing light would not suffuse them, and he hurled them desolately to a corner of the room.

…_it flapped its mighty scaled wings, fanning the flames of demolition, left her to her choking death throes…_

He dropped to his knees, and with a frenzied laughter of anguish, knelt amidst his own destruction, hugging his own arms, grasping desperately for a shadow of his wife, weeping…

…_the trees burned; the flowers burned; the ashes fluttered around, a scene of mad devastation…_

The carnations in the corner were forgotten. They would lie there for weeks, and as the flowers wilted, his faith in the goddess would, too, become… _(…and she lay there, a broken body eaten away by fire…)_

_Dead._

* * *

They moved to the suburban Kerning City after her death, for Merino could not bring himself to continue staying in that wretched house. He worked as a medic in Niora Hospital now, but he was a far cry from the powerful healer he once was.

Grimfaced, steely, he had no friends amongst his colleagues. His demeanour inspired fear, for his facial features did form a harsh, weathered expression even when talking to another. He worked silently, preferring to operate alone; he ate silently, forming an obvious barrier against his co-workers.

But no one could blame him, could they? He had lost almost all that he once most cherished.

* * *

Her father's sudden cold, depressed demeanour wasn't doing wonders for Lea. Already distraught at her mother's death, her father's melancholy was another burden. Merino's job couldn't sustain them both, so she had to busk in the streets to pay off the rent. But the alleys of Kerning were unsafe, and many a time, she had been approached by leering, dirty old men.

The music of a flute was a strange sound to be heard in Kerning, and that did gain her some fame at the start. However, people soon got bored of the same tunes over and over again, and largely they left her alone.

_Mother… she would have taught me all the songs she knew…_

Her father wasn't abusive, but he ignored her most of the time. She would have given anything, _anything_, just to make him notice her.

But he would never do so, as wrapped up in his troubles as he was.

It was unfair to her, that young girl of fifteen years; her mother's death hurt her as deeply as it did her father. But there was something else that Merino had to deal with – survivor's guilt. He had faced down the terrifying beast, Manon, in the same trial. Yet his unfortunate wife fell to it. It didn't help that he was the only one who could have talked her out of the quest.

The kids at school jeered at her. She was an orphan kid, a motherless child. They formed circles around her, spinning, dancing, laughing. All because her mother died.

She didn't deserve that. Most of the time, she gritted her teeth, and forced aside one of her tormentors to break free from the circle. But sometimes, she was trapped, clutching at the air in despair, throat unable to form words, surrounded by a crowd of taunting, jeering dragon-headed people…

Merino had given up the path of Minerva. He threw out all the bibles, the statues, everything that he once held dear. But who was to say that his daughter wouldn't continue on?

Now she lay, snuggled in her warm sanctuary, sandwiched between blanket and bed. Her only solace left was found in the Bible of Minerva, and as she relaxed, her hands turned the pages and stopped at one particular chapter.

Genesis 3. The fall of man.

* * *

"Why."

He found her kneeling before a marble feminine figurine, hands clasped together in soft prayer. He stepped between them, and the golden energy chains linking girl and statue broke. Lea gasped, as a nearly-drowned person would if just brought onto land.

"Why… why…" She keeled over, feeling faint. "It's not… your business… if I haven't given up…"

"On what? A non-existent goddess?"

"On that… and you…" Merino realised that her prayer was for him. After a moment of shock, he recovered and the feeling hastily turned to one of anger.

"I will not have a misled daughter beg and grovel for me to a lifeless slab of stone!"

"MINERVA EXISTS! HAVEN'T YOU REALISED THAT YOU LOST YOUR POWERS ALONG WITH YOUR FAITH? DOESN'T THAT MEAN SOMETHING?" In a burst of emotion, Lea shrieked at her father.

"Tell me then, if your goddess is so _great_, why does she let people suffer? Why let us die, and let the dead hurt the living?"

"The goddess has a plan for each of us, and each tragedy will turn out to be a blessing," she said, voice shaking with barely bridled rage.

"I remember telling you that a long time ago; it was just a lie, a lie, like Minerva herself. So you would say that your mother's death is a _BLESSING_?"

"You can't second-guess a goddess."

"And that's because she doesn't exist."

He walked over to the statue, hands poised to heave it up and hurl it out. But as he was about to touch the figurine, he was repelled by a sphere of magical, crackling energy. Flying back a few feet from where he was, he was knocked unconscious.

Shakily, his daughter stood behind, both arms clutching the wand that had cast the spell. Tears filled her eyes, now. She grabbed her rucksack, stepped over to Merino's body, and kissed his cheek gently, her own tears falling onto his face.

"I'm sorry, I must do this, Dad. You'll understand soon enough, and I promise I'll return."

* * *

The horn sounded twice, loud notes that rung throughout the fragrant, charming woods. "All aboard now, on the Orbis airship! Keep your hands to your own belongings, and hang on to that ticket!"

Mingling amongst the other passengers, she joined the swarm onto the ship. It was a majestic thing, hovering in the air miles above the water - a true scientific feat by the learned Magatian scholars of alchemy and physics. The wood sturdy enough to stand a few knocks, yet light enough to fly; the engine, powered by solar energy; the design, the beautiful paintings and carvings across the hull. The others didn't seem to notice this remarkable beauty, but for her, it was her first sight of what truly lay beyond Victoria Island. That glorious ship, framed against the Orbis skyscrapers in the distant horizon, made an unforgettable spectacle.

The ship was manned by a crew of ex-pirates. Or rather, pirates who used their powers for good. Ordinary sailors could never reach the expertise of these natural seafarers, although the less-than-acceptable hygiene did make for a rather uncomfortable trip.

She scaled the steps to the upper deck two at a time, grabbing on to a railing that felt suspiciously sticky. Wrinkling her face in disgust, she wiped her hand across her robes. Then she was confronted by a pirate, a young one really, no more than three years older than herself.

"Oi, you! Only authorized personnel can enter!" He frowned, right hand twirling his pistol with hypnotising expertise. She drew her eyes away from the gun.

"It doesn't seem like it, _mate_." She gestured towards all the other passengers climbing onto the level, and he scoffed.

"Tell you what. If you can race me up to the crow's nest, I'll get you something real good." And with that, he set off across the rigging, climbing as nimbly as a monkey.

"Hey, that's just unfair!" She began her belated journey upwards, but her rucksack was cumbersome, and the sun was in her eyes. The coarse, frayed rope burned her hands and she couldn't help but cry out in pain as she dragged herself upwards. She paused halfway across, then closed her eyes in concentration, muttering a soft chant while the arrogant boy mocked her from several feet above.

A blue light surrounded her body. The young pirate finally caught on to what she was doing, and hastily grabbed onto a rope, pulling himself up as quickly as he could manage.

And he reached the nest just as she landed in it.

"Oof!"

They quickly withdrew from the tangled mess, embarrassed. Then, Lea said, "I believe you owe me something good."

"I so got here first! 'Sides, you cheated with magic."

"You didn't say no magic was allowed."

"…Fine. I've no use for it anyway. Hold my hand."

"What?" She looked mildly affronted, and her face reddened a little.

"I'm going down the safe way. If you want to waste more energy teleporting, it's fine with me."

So she grabbed his hand, and bending the very laws of gravity and aerodynamics, he floated down bearing wings around his ankles.

"Wow, that was pretty cool." That brought a chuckle from him.

He brought her to his own personal cabin (apparently, he was the captain's son, Pita Relief) and from his chest, took out a long, black staff. A Nocturnal staff.

"…Thanks."

"I got it off another magician who bet he could beat me at Omok."

"I'm pretty sure we magicians are supposed to be smarter than a raggedy bunch of half-drunk sailors."

"Well, I can't say I didn't push around a few pieces when he wasn't looking…" She punched him jokingly. "What? If mages are intelligent, we pirates are dexterous, so I say we can all just use our different talents. 'Sides, look what that got you! A staff!"

She couldn't help but smile at that. She reached out her hand to claim the stave, and veins of yellow energy coursed through its body as she grabbed hold of it.

"Well… I guess I'll be heading off to the… uh, side… to…" She suddenly grabbed hold of her mouth, and her face turned faintly green. _Damn it, airsickness? _Running out from the cabin, and towards the side of the airship, she orally discarded her lunch over the railing, much to the consternation of the passengers around her.

Somehow, this vomiting episode made her confused, and sick, as she remembered her father and how he would feel when he woke up…

She threw up again.

* * *

_Screams, agonized screaming, a dragon breathing golden spurts of flame upon a woman screaming agonizingly. Pierced her heart. Flew off and let the forest burn._

_A man struck by his own daughter. His own flesh and blood to rebel - robbed of his last possession - Lea._

She woke up to the sounds of screams no longer part of her dreams.

Flames framed her room, a halo of crimson consuming the very walls that stood around her. The soot dirtied the air, and she, in her exhausted state, could only conjure up a weak shield that filtered out the black dust from precious oxygen about her.

"Fire, help…" She could only cry out softly, choking, as she stumbled around, looking for something she could put out the flames with. But even as she embarked on her futile search, the door fell down and she only had time for a brief feeling of relief before she saw the hulking frame of a hairy brown beast in the doorway.

A loud, guttural growl emitted from the armoured fiend. Brandishing a hefty Fairfrozen, it stamped its feet twice and a black aura emitted about him. A Balrog – one of the many incarnations of the Devil's vile power. As it fixed its squinty eyes upon her, she could only watch helplessly, weakened by sluggishness, as the spear came rushing down upon her-

It stopped about two inches short of her heart.

The Balrog had turned blue, a strange colour that matched its spear. A cool jet of snowflakes refreshed her mind and killed the flames around her. And staring past the ice, she saw Pita's silhouette against the door, two hands grasping the gun that just froze the beast.

"Enough with the pose! Kill it!"

"I – I can't. I can only hold it off for a few seconds before it thaws again. That huge ice jet really took it out of me…"

"Then what are going to do now?"

"Follow me."

Unhesitatingly, she rushed past the blue Balrog and into the haze that surrounded the ship. The members of the pirate crew were forcefully barking orders to the bewildered passengers.

"Everyone! To the escape boats now! I'll fend them off for a while," the captain said. With a grim nod in his son's direction, he returned his attention to the Crimson Balrog before him. With a single well-placed bullet in the eye, the beast disintegrated into ashes. Amazed by his prowess, Lea started to run along with the crowd when Pita stopped her.

"Why go with the hulls when you have gulls?"

Two glorious gaviotas swooped in from above, landing softly as feathers (incidentally, what they were) beside the duo. Confused and astounded, Lea got onto one of them and it instantly took off into the clouds behind Pita's.

"What about your dad?"

"He'll be fine. He's one of the best pirates in the world! I'll meet up with him later at Orbis. Now just sit and enjoy the ride."

* * *

The fairy city loomed ahead of them, rising citadels that pierced the sky and dwarfed the clouds.

The bird didn't respond well to Lea's hesitant nudges, but it knew well enough to follow Pita, who was an absolute natural at this whole bird-flying lark. Together they soared, one of them less graceful than the other.

When they descended onto the airship landing bay – much to Lea's relief – the conductor approached them, anxious and perspiring. "I only got a short signal about the Balrogs that fizzled out before I could reply! What's the situation up there?"

"It should be fine. When we left, most of the passengers were already evacuating. I can't say the same for the crew though, but I trust them with my life, and I don't trust that easily."

"So everything should be alright?"

"Will be."

They sat on the pier in an awkward silence. It was quite obvious to Lea that her acquaintance was troubled, but she didn't want to question his belief in his father lest he crack and flare up.

He quickly rose up and nearly fell off the docks when he saw a fleet of tiny ships heading towards Orbis though.

"Dad!" His father was manning the ship at the head of the v-shaped formation, facial expression full of mirth and laughter, an odd expression on a Balrog attack survivor. Pita got a shock when he saw a red fire behind his father, but shortly realised it was the first mate, Bob Buccaneer, in his transformed state. Buccaneers had refined the elemental artes to bathe their own bodies in fire and ice to protect themselves and cast down their fury upon their opponents.

"Well, that's a Relief," said Lea dryly, to the annoyed amusement of the boy beside her. Soon enough, the ships were docked beside them, and their passengers and captains alighted safely.

"Hey there, if it isn't our little cabin boy!" Bob remarked with a teasing grin on his face. Shaking vigorously, he got rid of the transformation necessary to grant him higher powers in the ways of the viper. It got too hot at times, he always complained.

"Well this particular cabin boy is the bosun!"

"Some bosun who abandoned his crew in time of need," his father mocked. "For a girl no less! No offence, charming cleric." Said cleric blushed.

"Who led the way for the evacuators? That's right, the two of us! Now will you please drop it and tell me what happened?"

"Alright, Casanova." A flash of regret crossed Bob's normally cheerful face. "We sunk the ship. In air, I mean. Oh sweet gull turd - we blasted the engine, it exploded and the ship fell from the sky. That good enough?"

"...Shucks. What's a crew without a ship? We left most of our money on that ship didn't we? And we still have to reimburse those passengers! Damned Balrogs!" He kicked at a few loose stones.

"Apart from pawning our weapons, I'm really not sure what we can do. After all, it's not like we grabbed our jewels before we left or anything…" Captain Relief chuckled. Only then did his son notice that the ships were laden with shiny, golden treasure.

"Since when did we have so much? Last I checked, we barely filled half the puny storeroom…"

"Last you checked, we haven't yet looted booty off a Balrog frigate!"

The crew whooped with joy, Pita joining in despite feeling like the butt of the joke for the entire crew. The rambunctious cheering went on for quite a while before the insistent sound of wood tapping ground grew too loud to ignore.

"Yes, Miss Vesting?"

"I might have heard something about reimbursements," she crossed her arms disapprovingly, stern gaze sweeping over the shamefaced men like a teacher reprimanding her boisterous students.

"Tell you what, we'll pay for your lodging at the Orbis Hotel for a while, that sound alright?"

She nodded, pleased. "I don't really know anyone here, so thanks!"

"Hold on a while. If you don't know anyone, why'd you come over here?"

"Well…" It would take too long and be too painful for her to narrate her life, so she just went with "Minerva".

"Tchah!" The captain exclaimed. "If she did exist, and that's a big old 'if' there, why didn't she save our ship from the Balrogs? We ain't done no wrong!" He declared flippantly.

Her black staff glowed a fierce gold then dimmed as she held her tumultuous emotions back. _It felt too much like what her father said_. But then she whispered a soft prayer to Minerva, and the Goddess' healing light danced about the pirates, their wounds sealed and bruises cleared.

As she marched off ahead of them, leaving Captain Relief to mull over what just happened, the latter simply muttered, "A good long soak in a spa would have done the same."

* * *

The next day, she decided to visit the sacred statue of Minerva.

Fighting her way past the foul sentinel balls in Orbis Tower was no mean feat, but with her clerical powers, she managed to get to it unharmed. There, she could feel the thrumming of the Goddess' energy about the sculpture, and when she laid her hand upon the Goddess', she quickly drew it with a gasp. It felt as if volts had leapt from the marble into her palm, and now that she looked at it, it… it glowed!

"_I have yet to see one whose potential could match Grendel's till this day._"

Another volt ran up her back, and she leapt up, afraid of a prank of some sort.

"_Beware not. It is I, not any mortal, who speaks._"

The statue seemed ordinary. But behind it, there was just the faintest outline of a beautiful woman, whose lustre matched that of the heavens. She smiled, and so did Lea.

"_Lea Vesting. Evangelist. I hereby name you this. Go to the priestesses of Orbis, young child. They will understand._"

The figure behind the effigy of Minerva faded and lost its sheen. Lea knelt, a heavy burden sudden lying across her shoulders. She prayed.

When she stood up, her hand, the hand that touched the statue, burned even brighter. And then it exploded into a myriad of brilliant lights.

* * *

There were no crazy lights when she woke up.

She patted the ground beside her, only to find out that there was no ground. She was lying atop a cloud!

_Did I die or something after that message? How can that be?_

Having unconsciously said that aloud, she received a snort from somewhere behind her. "What you did may have killed you, but I certainly am not dead."

Pita's voice. That deep timbre resonated futilely throughout her half-awake ears.

"What is this place?"

"It's a secluded area of Orbis Cloud Park. Not so secluded actually, more of an area abandoned by monsters." Suddenly, Pita's earlier words sank in.

"Wha- what did I do?"

Pita drew a breath, about to reply to her, then a white robe walked towards her. It looked as if there was nobody in it, but that was only because of the white cowl.

"I'll let her explain. It's not really my area of expertise, blasting out killer lights." _Killer..?_

"Don't listen to that silly pirate," The priestess said hastily upon seeing Lea's mortified expression, drawing back her hood to reveal a young face. "Firstly, this is Minerva's sanctuary, where the priestesses gather for worship. Secondly, you may or may not have released a large amount of energy that annihilated every single monster in Orbis Tower."

"Really? I can't remember what exactly happened… Hold on, I recall having a conversation with the Goddess…"

The priestess' eyes widened considerably. "Are you sure? Minerva hasn't revealed herself to anybody since the time of Grendel!"

"Yes, she said pretty much the same to me. It was at her statue, and she made my hand glow! I think that's why it exploded." She quickly checked for said hand. Luckily, it was still whole and made of flesh.

"I do think that you may become a great servant to Minerva," The priestess remarked appraisingly. "Come along now, I'll fill you in about this place along the way, and I suppose your unkempt acquaintance must follow too, seeing how he managed to bring you all the way here."

"Hey! I'm not unkempt, I'm just… a believer in entropy!"

* * *

Apparently, this sanctuary was where Minerva had lived and created the first humans. But they chose freedom over her, and in grief, she chased them out and condemned this place to abandonment. Whoever stepped in here would fall dead in an instant.

Though when Grendel was a fresh youth, he stumbled upon this ancient place, and Minerva, seeing his potential for goodness, spared his life. From then on, this place was made holy and he founded the city of Orbis about it. And in the time Grendel took to mature and become the leader of Ellinia, this place was lost to the annals of time till a few years ago.

The priestess, Maven, took Pita and Lea to the chamber of the founding priestess of this sanctuary. She looked old, to say the least – wrinkles criss-crossed about her harsh-looking face and her hair looked as if it were dyed to a snow white.

"I pay my respects to you, Priestess Ivyfern." That was the greeting that was taught to her only a few moments ago.

"I hear that the Goddess' power is strong in you, young Lea." She didn't know what to say to this, so she merely inclined her head downwards.

"Comparable to Grendel, even… would you mind if I take your hand, lady?" Without waiting for a reply, she grasped hold of Lea's hand – the one that had previously glowed – and…

Nothing happened. Or at least it felt that way to Lea.

"Minerva's blessings are indeed highly bestowed upon you. You have a huge responsibility to bear, child."

And without further ado, she reached out a shrivelled hand, from which a bolt of lightning leapt and killed Pita where he stood.

Lea screamed.

"WHAT DID YOU DO THAT FOR?" She shook the old woman by her shoulders, and it was testament to her strength that she didn't collapse when Lea did so.

"Calm down, insolent child!"

"How do I calm down when you just killed my friend right before my eyes?" Her tone was still shrill.

"Because all is not lost. You have a few minutes left to save his soul before it departs forever."

"…Resurrect? That's a Bishop's role! I… I'm only a cleric! Please, save him!"

"I am unable to do any more for him. My own life is drawing nearer to its end." The elderly priestess teleported out of the room, leaving Lea without any choice.

She got down onto her knees, gripping her black staff ever so tightly, and whispered, shakily…

"Resurrect."

* * *

It was just like during her encounter with the Balrog – flames burnt on every side of her, a choking sulphuric stench diffusing throughout the air. Ghastly spirits came and went, gaunt, grievous, grovelling. Some of them were a dim white and almost transparent – those seemed to look the most tortured, the most despaired. She guessed the more colourful and opaque ones would be the newcomers.

"Pita…" Her voice could not carry far in the windless purgatory. It did, however, draw the attention of several ghosts lurking about her – they soon swarmed about her, wary yet with a blatant hunger in their pale eyes.

"Human, not dead…" Soft, sibilant whispers surrounded Vesting. She felt so sorry for these lost souls – if only someone had sowed the seeds of the Goddess' forgiveness in them, then…

Then a tentative finger jabbed into her shoulder, an iceberg piercing flesh and sinew, jarring against frail collagen bone. The scream was stifled halfway through her throat, for she dared not show fear in front of these horrible half-humans.

"Tell me where is Pita Relief." Her firm, commanding tone failed to persuade the spectres.

"What is in it for uss?"

"I will relieve your pain, if only for a short while. But I will try my best."

This offer must have been tempting – a break from the endless torment in Hell. They started off a simple chain of hushed mumblings, a whispering wheel going round and round across the chambers, till finally, the murmurings ceased. Chalky hands reached out and pushed a shivering boy towards her.

"L-Lea? But you're not dead…"

"And neither are you, if I have any say in it. Hold my hand and let me complete the ritual!"

With a flash of light that rivalled even the hellish fires, the colour slowly returned to Pita's body, and no longer was he translucent, but was made of flesh once more.

"Payment, we ask for payment…" Low hisses came from about the only humans in the room. They circled about her, turned from aides to foes.

"This is too many! I can't possibly Heal all the spirits in this room!"

"You can try, or you can die..."

More icebergs poked at her, leaving no wounds behind, only pain. She hardly had a choice, did she?

And so she exhausted her magical powers filling Hell with the green, healing light of Minerva.

* * *

She was back to the pseudo-heaven in Cloud Park once more. Pita was alive, and had his pistol trained upon the old priestess.

"No, it's all a misunderstanding!" For one so fierce towards the priestess just some time ago, Lea showed remarkable ferocity in defending her too.

"I hardly think she misjudged her aim and sent me to Hell by accident."

"She wanted me to learn, and you too!" _Learn that I must save the living before they fall beyond salvation!_

"What is there to learn by dying? That I have a horrible afterlife?"

"That's only if you don't seek the Goddess' truth!" Pita turned to face her, a terrible, jaded expression on his face as they stared into each other's eyes.

"I'm sure you'd find it hard to believe in Minerva when you've been taught your whole life not to, and why not to."

He turned around on his heel, stepping gravely away from the haven, _away from her_. And she felt so betrayed, wounded to the core of her heart.

Until she realised that there was another in the room who was wounded even more deeply – one who was felled by a bullet released just a few seconds ago.

* * *

Years went by, and she never saw the murdering gunslinger again.

The death of Ivyfern was mourned, but a death didn't mean the abolishment of the church. The priestesses adopted Lea as one of their own, and she grew to become a noble servant of Minerva. She had matured much since then – she was now more acquainted with the powers of the Goddess, and more able to spread the Goddess' gospel.

Lea sat on a bench at the Orbis station, done preparing for her first evangelistic mission to Florina Beach. She smiled wistfully, memories of Victoria Island swimming around her head. Her father dominated much of them. Though she never picked up on any news of him, he would certainly have heard about her – possibly the youngest female bishop in several centuries.

_He would have been proud once, but I'm probably dead to him now._

The ship came to port with its blaring foghorn, bringing back memories from many years ago. _Pita_… She had nothing to remember him by except the black Nocturnal staff, and that she kept in a chest under her bed.

The trip was uneventful, compared to the last ship ride she'd been in, what with the Balrog invasion and all. She alighted at Florina Beach, a somewhat popular tourist destination, though few of its visitors explored further than the beautiful coastline. The place had retained its natural charm, unaffected by the urbanisation of the busier regions in Aquila. The locals were a friendly bunch, and the people who were hosting her for the few weeks were especially nice to her. Some of the children in the village swarmed her with questions about the outside world, and she pacified them with sweets and snacks.

After talking to a few of the tribal folk, she could surmise that their religion was founded about a form of ancestor/idol worship. They believed that the souls of their dead kinsmen would house themselves in seashells, and consequently there was a huge market in the seashell trade, for the people wished for their ancestors to rest their afterlives in the largest, finest specimens of conchology. She found it odd how the souls of the dead could just shift their resting place at whim, though she dared not voice her objections just yet.

Further questioning led to the revelation of a dark tale upon the island. It seemed that the chief's father, Clang, had his soul 'housed' in a large, bright blue conch shell. It was kept in a sacred clearing, though one day when worshippers came to visit the deceased chief, they were attacked by the evil incarnation of the chief. It ran off and sought its refuge in a corner of Florina Beach, and the people had to offer up young women as sacrifices to the corrupted creature to deter the wrath of what they named as 'King Clang'

She had, however, investigated into the island's history before her visit, and the scientists at Omega Sector told her that a few years ago, a radioactive spill seemed to have affected the marine life around the area, and resulted in the creation of an abominably large species of crabs. The supposed 'King Clang' was not just one crab, but a moderately-sized family of these gigantic crabs. Lea was determined to reveal the truth to the Florinians, in hope that they would learn the error of their religion and be converted.

She brought along two of the tribe's hunters on her adventure to the far end of the beach. After dispatching several groups of Lorangs and Lupins, they finally reached the breeding ground of the giant crabs.

"We should tread carefully here. The giant monsters are powerful and can easily take you out with a swing," Lea warned.

"Giant monsters? There is more than one?" One of the hunters said in heavily accented English. She quickly told them what the Omega scientists had relayed to her.

"That cannot be true! King Cl-…."

Three of the hulking blue shells rose from the ground, their sheer size making the ground underneath tremble. Lea lost her balance and fell onto the sand, her staff flung a fair distance from her. The hunters could hardly rein in their shock at the impossible sight.

"Then the chief Clang… he is not responsible for this? This is a relief, but it is getting dangerous!"

The hunters' javelins bounced harmlessly off the thick shells. With a fearsome roar, one of the beasts charged at Lea, who barely managed to roll aside. She cried out in pain as a jagged shell cut deep into her shoulder.

"We must escape! These crabs can fend off our weapons far too easily!"

The two hunters managed to sprint across the open beach into the relative safety of the undergrowth. Lea, however, was still sprawled across the sand, her staff far beyond reach.

A claw clutched around her body, raising her dizzyingly high above the ground. All of Lea's powers were useless without her staff, and all she could do was try to squirm out of the beast's claw. But the sharp pincers were already drawing blood, and they were tightening about her frail body, wounding even deeper…

A loud blast sounded from somewhere below her. She felt the claws loosen, and she started to accelerate towards the ground. She closed her eyes, readying for impact, but… she was going upwards?

She opened her eyes to see a bunch of feathers.

She heard a male voice crying out, but the blast left her ears ringing. The bird she was lying on slowly descended upon a boat, and when she looked back to land, the three giant shells were in splinters.

She turned around to discover her saviour, Captain Relief.

"A strange sight to see on Florina Beach."

"Same to you, captain."

"Oh, you know, pirates do get days off from their work. Florina has the finest rum of all known Aquila, it's said."

"I was trying to dispel the myth about King Clang, actually."

"Bah, superstitious mumbo-jumbo. Much like that Minerva of yours –tchah!"

Her gut twisted in unease. The captain could tell he went a bit too far, so he quickly shut up and fetched the priestess back to the main port of the beach.

There, they found the two hunters surrounded by an enraptured, yet skeptical-looking crowd. When they saw Lea, they exclaimed and jabbed fingers at her, gesturing for her to come over. And so she did, and she started supplementing the unbelievable story told by the two Florinians.

"So… it seems my father is blameless. I have sincere regret for casting the blame on my father's ghost. Now, if you would excuse me, I shall send some foragers out to search for another shell worthy of the chief Clang's soul…"

"No." Her forceful tone stunned the crowd.

"I'm afraid I cannot let my father's soul be left alone. He must be given refuge as soon as possible." The chief's eyes narrowed sternly, annoyed at this impertinent outsider who had little knowledge of their customs.

"These shells of the dead… hasn't the whole incident with the blue crabs brought anything to mind? Souls no longer walk this earth, they are sent to a supernatural realm divided into Heaven and Hell."

Her outrageous claims drew gasps from her audience, but she had to use this moment, when they were beginning to draw away from their own religion, to begin her missionary work.

"I know many of you will be skeptical. Given a day or two you might forget this. But truly, I tell you, Minerva's grace is offered to those who follow her.

My father himself was a great priest, firm in his faith and strong in his love. Yet he was shook when my mother fell in battle, and he lost all belief in the goddess. He became a hateful man, living out a sad life full of regret, grief and spite.

I share with you this because I don't want anyone else to be lost from the goddess. I… I'm afraid that my father won't return to her…"

She bent down on her knees and cried into her dusty hands. The tribesmen were at a loss for words. Finally, the chief went over with words of consolation.

"I am sure that your father will realise what is right or wrong given time. My tribe… I'm not sure what other things we have believed in are actually false. I am not sure even if this Minerva you speak of exists. But I trust you, priestess, for you have shown strength in the face of adversity, and have shown courage in your attempts to free our tribe from the terror of the blue crabs. Perhaps we shall soon take a visit to the land of Orbis. I am sure that it will be an enriching journey."

The Florinian's words soothed her heart. At least there, on that beach, she opened their hearts and minds to the almighty Minerva, lighting a candle of hope and letting her own flame burn brighter –

– yet her own father was left behind in the dark.

* * *

"Have you any idea where your son might be?"

An awkward silence had settled upon the little boat, with its two occupants busy with steering his boat back to Orbis or consolidating her report of Florina's residents. Now the quiet was dispelled, and the onus was on Captain Relief to continue the conversation.

"No."

"Why the tight-lipped attitude now?" He grunted. She returned to her report uncomfortably.

A few moments passed. He walked over and sat on a chair beside the priestess.

"Well, if you really must know, it's because of you."

"Me?"

"What you said at the beach… made my brain feel real itchy. I mean it in a ficker- figuratiti- ahem. Figurative tone, of course. I don't got brain lice or diseases like that. But I've been thinking."

"Guess you don't usually do that, if it's such a monumental event you have to tell others."

"I'm baring my old soul and heart here, so I'd like it if you keep shut and listen." He hesitated a little before he went on. "I was raised a cleric at first, you know."

She snorted, and immediately regretted it when she saw the hurt look in his eyes. He suddenly laughed – turns out he was faking it – but he quickly shushed her before she could retort.

"It's true though, I swear by this beauty of a boat. Now you see, me pa' and ma' were real devout and all. They went to church, prayed everyday, all that stuff. They even got me baptised and gave me formal training under the local bishop. It all seemed right, but one day, I sailed off on a boat with my crew and left it all behind.

"… You sure there's nothing you left out?"

"Oh sure, there was all that parental arguments, divorce, abuse, the typical things. So much for holy and sanctified marriage under Minerva, huh." She could feel the atmosphere on the little boat change, and she felt such great sorrow for the captain.

She got up and placed her hands on the head of the captain. A flash of light, and a flood of pictures rushed into her mind… _A young boy bathed in holy water, a young boy receiving a stave from an elderly man, a young boy casting his first Heal spell…_

She blacked out and fell roughly on the decks of the ship.

* * *

Lea woke up in Minerva's sanctuary.

"Oh she's opened her eyes!" Maven's voice exclaimed somewhere to the right of her. She groggily rose up, and after another short blackout, she Healed herself and hopped off her bed.

"Where's the captain?"

"Oh, you mean the guy who sent you here? He said he saved you from monstrous savages on the beach, which doesn't seem to be true. By the way, have you done up your Florina report yet?"

"Well, yes," Lea answered rather irritably. "But where did he go?"

"I don't know either, but the last I saw, he was skulking around the statue of Minerva."

Of course, it was too late by the time she reached the holy altar – he had long departed from this sanctuary, on to live his life elsewhere.

But in a heartening moment, she saw two firm imprints in the cloud-ground, directly in front of Minerva's statue where the captain had knelt and prayed.

* * *

Merino had spent the last years in relative solitude. It still hurt that his daughter had left him for an imaginary being in the sky, but it was a number, duller feeling than before.

He was about to begin an operation on a patient who had a crippling, probably incurable infection in his arm. It drew Merino back to that day, that day when he cured the bowmistress Athena, that day Sylvan told him she would go on the quest that led to her –

No, he had to concentrate.

Steeling his nerves, he put on his surgeon gown and arranged his tools. The doors opened and the "Operation" sign lit up in dark red letters as his team wheeled in the anaesthetised patient. An eerie yellow light came on above the patient, and he pulled on his latex gloves.

"Scalpel."

_Cut. Slice. Switch instrument. _

The robotic way he operated left his mind to its own devices. He kept thinking of Lea, for some reason. Minerva too, of course. It was really much easier then, wasn't it, when he had his healing powers, his goddess-given skills.

That was just a farce, he tried to remind himself. A gimmick, a trick of the mind, nothing more. Perhaps a placebo effect at best.

_Cleanse wound. Switch instrument._

Somehow, he couldn't manage to convince himself fully this time. A niggling doubt lurked in the back of his mind.

_Goddess, if you're out there somewhere, then show me proof. Show me a miracle. Bring my life back to the way it was. You can't do that, can you?_

The patient shifted a little. Merino paused for a few moments, then resumed the operation.

_You're just this fictional construct in my mind, and I don't even get why I'm talking to you, or myself, like this. _

He went back to his work silently. Several minutes passed.

_If you exist, bring back Sylvan. Bring her back from Leafre, let her never have died to that foul dragon. Bring back my d-_

"…Dad?"

"… … Pita?"

* * *

"Ehh… put the target a little further back now."

Pita fired, his left hand shaking a little from the recoil. The bullet narrowly missed the bullseye.

"That's good I suppose."

Lea stared guiltily at his empty right sleeve. The operation that day had failed, in small part due to her interruption halfway through.

"I'm really sorry about th-"

"It's not your fault, Lea," Pita cut in. "Relax, I can still shoot well enough."

They were in the Henesys archery range, borrowing a few targets (courtesy of resident bowmistress Athena) for Pita to get used to shooting with his left arm. He took the news of the amputation quite well, and had been spending the past few days for recuperation.

"Lea!"

She turned around with a smile on her face. She still hadn't got used to that long-forgotten warmth in her father's voice.

"The moving truck's ready. We can return to Ellinia."

She took a few steps towards her father, then remembered the gunslinger behind her.

"Oh, don't worry about me. I'll stay safe. I'm sure we'll see each other again some time."

She grinned, almost painfully. She hated goodbyes. She followed her father back to their house at Kerning and up the truck with the furniture.

"So, you're back in business, Dad?" He nodded happily.

"What's it going to be called?"

"The same name, Lea."

"Can you teach me some things, Dad?"

"You're real full of questions, aren't you! Fine, but it's going to be pretty difficult."

"When-" She was silenced by a joking glare from Merino.

"Thank the goddess for small mercies."

* * *

Her first breath of Ellinia was wonderful. The clear, spring air smelled of flowers, forests and fresh streams. As the truck rolled to a stop in front of their old treehouse, she was surprised to see a grubby little package in front of their doorstep.

"Recipient: Lea Vesting. Sender: Your favourite one-armed pirate." She smiled as she read aloud the attached tag.

She lifted up the package, to find that it was remarkably light. She opened it, to find a set of white, expensive-looking priestess robes inside. She hoped that this meant that he had accepted Minerva.

She lifted up the robes to admire them. To her surprise, there was one last gift lying at the bottom of the package:

A slightly crushed, but nevertheless beautiful bouquet of white carnations.

* * *

**A/N:**

Hello! Thanks for reading this :)

A religious story set in Maplestory, look at that. Heh. I guess I just missed the game, missed writing, and there are certain parallels with my life, haha.

I hope that it wasn't _too_ bad, but I don't mind if you criticise me or anything. I hope that even if you aren't um religious, you'll appreciate this short fanfic, and if you are, and can relate to this story, then do tell :)

Bye, I'll probably never write anything up here anymore but it was fun writing Maplestory fanfiction hahaha.


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